BECAUSE lesbian relationships are still not recognized by law,

BECAUSE lesbophobia is so internalized that most lesbians are still afraid to "come out",

BECAUSE when we choose to put ourselves and all lesbians needs first we're told we are being selfish, as if that's a bad thing,

BECAUSE when we try to build dyke-identified lives, we are feared and rejected,

BECAUSE we have no lesbian spaces of our own,

BECAUSE when we try to create dyke only space, bisexual women and men demand to be included,

BECAUSE we are told to give our energies to men and their heteropatriarchy,

BECAUSE when we choose to reject heteropatriarchy we are attacked, insulted and rejected,

BECAUSE men still rape and kill us and aren't held accountable,

BECAUSE when we express anger at this male violence and misogynist oppression, we are told we are abusive,

BECAUSE when we tell men not to touch or talk to us we are told we're uptight and reversing sexism,

BECAUSE when we explain that we have chosen to surround ourselves with females only we are insulted by being called naive, and then given condescending lectures about cutting ourselves off from half the human race,

BECAUSE dykes who have sold out, laugh at us and say: "I used to hate men too, but I got over it. You will too",

BECAUSE even in our own community, butches who have courageously rejected and resisted femininity are accused of wanting to be men,

BECAUSE liberal "do whatever you feel" politics have encouraged violence and abuse to be acted out sexually,

BECAUSE when we challenge where the desire to hurt and be hurt comes from, we are called uptight and pitted as the puritans against the "sex radicals",

BECAUSE partner abuse in lesbian relationships is silenced or assumed to be mutual,

BECAUSE it's long overdue to challenge, unlearn and reject the racism, anti-semitism, ethnicism, classism, imperialism, ableism, fat oppression, lookism and ageism world has divided our communities for so long,

BECAUSE the women's movement, and het feminists are still asking us to shut up and hide after we worked so hard to build rape crisis centres and shelters,

BECAUSE even when we do try to assert and fight for our rights, were told we are silencing hets, and taking up too much space,

BECAUSE there isn't enough room to list all the reasons,

BECAUSE lesbian separatists are scapegoated for all problems in our communities and

BECAUSE together we have the strength and courage to take the risks and make the choices,